Installler can't read .msi file

**Gaius Claudius Nero** · December 27, 2010, 09:15 PM

Hi

I have downloaded the installer 3 times, wherever it is downloade from, it borks with the same error - it can't read the .msi file and suggests the package is corrupt. Any suggestions? I hardly think all the packages from 3 different sites can be corrupt. Thanks in advance.

**Carados** · December 28, 2010, 05:36 AM

I don't know much about the installer, Quinn and/or Bladerunner will have to have a look - or anyone else who happens to know what's going on

That said, are you running it in the right place? Always make sure you target it to activision if you have an activision folder or the creative assembly if you have the creative assembly folder.

**Quinn Inuit** · December 28, 2010, 11:41 AM

Welcome to the boards, mate!

My first guess is that you have a downloading issue that's causing you to repeatedly time out during downloads. Precisely how many bytes are each of those files? Do they match? If so, could someone with an installer post how big theirs is? (Um...don't take that the wrong way.)

Second, try installing something else random on your computer. It's possible that your Windows Installer Service is b0rked.

Third, try downloading the zipped folders from the main downloads thread and extracting those. That'll get you to the same place and with only slightly more work.

O.K., back to vacation. I'll be around more reliably in a few days.

**Irenaeus** · December 28, 2010, 05:05 PM

File sizes on my HDD are as follows:
- ExRM 3.5.3b 188,827,434 bytes
- ExRM 3.4 290,772,824 bytes
- ExRM 3.3.4 290,778,302 bytes
Hope this helps, enjoy your vacation Quinn

**Gaius Claudius Nero** · December 28, 2010, 05:58 PM

Thanks for the replies and the welcome. I checked the sizes, all three correspond to Ireneus' numbers. My usual PC died recently and I have been recreating things on one of my spares the last few days. This is the only package out of dozens I've had to download that has done this. The only visible thing I can see is the initial loader screens not displaying properly, text overflowing boxes, but I've seen that kind of graphics glitch with installers that have behaved otherwise impeccably. I will give the unwrapped files a go but I would like to get to the bottom of this because with my luck it'll happen again with something that won't behave as well. I am running XP sp3, Vista is clunky and 7 ... the beast that died would have none of that, I had 2 irrecoverable partions for my efforts with that one. I swear all the decent coders are doing games mods for fun! Thanks guys, you've given me hours of fun. The number of fiendishly difficult but ending with completely silly scorelines I've had, things of beauty you wish you could save and replay... only to have it exit to the desktop when coming out. Keep it up, I look forward to 4.00

**Irenaeus** · December 28, 2010, 06:09 PM

Can you open the MSI files with Orca? If so, then the files have been downloaded all OK. Another idea is to make sure both the game directory and the directory containing the MSI files are not in the Program Files directories, these are protected with virtualisation in Vista or Win7.

**Gaius Claudius Nero** · December 28, 2010, 07:04 PM

Orca? Is that a KIller App?

Sorry coudn't resist. Joking aside I ran them from my downloads folder. If I recall correctly, I have had ExRM installed and running under Vista as well as XP, the 7 release candidate as well. This box has XPsp3 and Ubuntu on it at the moment. When I get this sorted I'll see about getting it to play with Wine. BTW this is really appreciated.

**Quinn Inuit** · December 28, 2010, 08:07 PM

Good luck. Let me know how Orca works for you. Also, please let me know if you can get it working on Wine, and what you had to do. I'd love to be able to put Wine instructions up there.

I'm glad you've enjoyed it so much so far!

**Irenaeus** · December 29, 2010, 03:49 AM

Orca MSI editor is here

**Gaius Claudius Nero** · January 01, 2011, 08:00 PM

Orca can't read the file. I have installed it manually and it seems to run okay, though I run a 24in 1920x1200x32bit screen and that and a lot of the other resolutions seem to be missing. I also got an error refering to a missing Samnite AOR, though it didn't stop the game running. I'd forgotten how ugly dome of the artwork is. Are those Cretan or Orc archers? And the Seleucid pikemen look like Smurfs with their blue Phrygian hemets!

**Irenaeus** · January 02, 2011, 08:55 AM

Gaius, I think the reasons the resolutions are missing is that RTW was written in 2004 and widescreen monitors weren't common then. Anything above 1280x1024 wasn't expected. If you can't open the msi file with Orca, then you are likely to be having your internet connection temporarily dropping whilst downloading the file, this is common for large files. At least you can install it manually (the missing AOR is probably the file where your download manager lost connection and started again, hence the msi file being broken even though it is the right number of bytes).

**Quinn Inuit** · January 01, 2011, 08:19 PM

That's strange. Have you installed the patches, too?

Ouch. Not a fan of KLA's work, I take it. FWIW, the Seleucid guys are being replaced, but I think we're keeping the Cretans. KLA's the only one who's armed and armoured them properly, IMO.

**Gaius Claudius Nero** · January 02, 2011, 08:20 AM

After the last post I looked at the time, it was two in the morning!

Patched and hotfixed.

I agree on the Cretans, the new skins make explicit their melee performance.

The Samnite error hasn't reoccurred, probably because Historical Battles aren't playable now. Unexpectedly I was able to fight Raphia first time round.